


someone to come home to

by teddy_or_something



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Angst, Anxiety, Bad Parenting, Hurt No Comfort, I Apologize For This, Sad, Sad Ending, Simply because I can, Third Year Yachi Hitoka, Yachi Hitoka-centric, but this is actually just straight up angst, no beta we die like daichi, the boys are just mentioned btw, the title sounds romantic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-18
Updated: 2021-01-18
Packaged: 2021-03-16 05:01:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28825632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teddy_or_something/pseuds/teddy_or_something
Summary: It was the fifth night in a row that Madoka wouldn't be home for dinner.It wouldn't be the first time, and it certainly won't be the last.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 24





	someone to come home to

**Author's Note:**

> Very sorry for this, but I really needed to write some Yachi angst with an unresolved ending. I love her, I swear.

It was the fifth night in a row that her mom wouldn't be home for dinner. 

It wouldn't be the first time, and it certainly won't be the last. In fact, she's gone longer without even hearing a word from her mom, not even knowing how long she'd be gone for. She shouldn't be so upset. 

But she just got accepted into her dream school and her mom wasn't there to celebrate with her. She wouldn't even answer the phone so Yachi could tell her the news. 

And it hurt. It hurt so much.

She couldn't call any of her friends. Yamaguchi and Tsukishima were both celebrating their own acceptances with their families, and Kageyama probably wouldn't even know what to do. She could call Hinata, she supposed, but he'd probably get bored of her within the first five minutes. Yachi really wasn't much fun, and she was well aware of that fact. 

She spent the night eating cupped ramen and watching some American sitcom while trying not to think about it. And she tried. She tried and she tried to keep the intrusive thoughts out of her mind, but the dam she'd had up in her mind since the beginning of her third year was finally beginning to break apart. 

Funny. She had thought that she was doing better.

 _How can she keep doing this to me? How can she keep leaving?_ Her body began to slowly curl in on itself, already small form shrinking until she took up as little space as possible on the plush couch. Her mind spiraled with questions that she didn't have the answers to, wondering why this and why that, as if her mom would suddenly pop up out of nowhere and quell her curiosity. 

Still.

Why did her mom keep doing this to her? It seemed like every time things were looking better, they got worse. Did her mom not understand the fear that Yachi felt when she didn't come home? The crippling anxiety that made it hard to eat and sleep all because she didn't know where her mother was? Anything could have happened to her, _anything_ , yet she kept leaving as if it was nothing. As if the streets weren’t dangerous for women at night. As if she didn't have anyone waiting at home for her. _As if._

All of her important dates were looked over in favor of her mother's work schedule. Did she forget that she was working to provide for her child, or did that somehow get lost in translation between train rides? And it wasn't like she blamed her mom, of course she didn't. People have to work, and spending time with Yachi Hitoka wasn't much to look forward to in the first place, but she could at least shoot her a text or send up a smoke signal when she was leaving. Anything. _Anything._

And her sobs wouldn't stop. They continued to wrack her small frame as one hand cupped over her mouth, the other arm hooked over her chest so as to hug herself. She looked around at the house that her mom hadn't been in for days, wondering what would happen if she just up and left. Would her mom look for her? Would she be afraid like Yachi was right now?

Ah, it didn't matter. Just the thought of being out in the world all alone had her lunch threatening to come back up her throat. Besides, Yachi could never do such a thing. She could never hurt her mom like that, disappearing without a word, coming back whenever she saw fit. It was unfathomable. 

It was, however, familiar, and the thought of getting payback wouldn't leave her mind, even as she continued to weep and gasp and tremble.

Through all of the tears, she somehow managed to fall asleep. She must not have realized it, though, because she was slightly surprised to be awakened by an insistent tap on her shoulder. Bleary eyes blinked open as she took in her surroundings. She was still on the couch. 

"Hitoka," called a voice like a knife, cutting through the early morning atmosphere with an air that said 'there is much to get done today, and you must begin right away.' "Hitoka, wake up."

"Mom?"

"I saw your letter on the counter," she said, pulling Yachi up into an upright position by her shoulder. "You got accepted. Very good."

And normally, Yachi would be ecstatic to receive praise from her mother. Normally, she'd be talking her mom's ear off about how excited she was until she was told to be quiet because "it's uncouth to ramble like that". Normally…

No. 

"No."

"What?"

"You don't get to say that," she said, and it was the first time words so harsh had ever touched her tongue. She was always so nice, always so respectful and considerate and _sweet_ , but in that moment, bitter never tasted so good. 

Because she was sure that her face was still streaked with tears and snot and frown lines. She was sure that she looked like a wreck and that her face was still stained red like the lips that had never touched her forehead. She was sure that she looked a mess, but her mother had just ignored all of that in favor of congratulating her for getting into a school. 

To hell with a school. 

"You don't get to tell me 'good job' when I sat here waiting for you for hours and you never showed up. You don't get to."

"Hitoka, stop with this nonsense-"

"It's not nonsense!" she exclaimed, and it was the second time that she had ever shouted at her mom. "Where was that congratulations last night when you weren't here? When you wouldn't answer the phone? When I didn't even know where you _were_?"

Her mother rolled her eyes, still not getting it. "I was at work. You know I'm busy."

"Too busy to send a text?" she asked, voice breaking into something just short of agony. "Too busy to answer the phone and _tell me_ that you're too busy? You are never too busy to let me know that you're still alive! That you're still _okay!_ "

A look resembling shame seemed to cross Madoka's features, and for a moment, Yachi thought that she'd get an apology, but then- "I'm leaving for a business trip tomorrow. I'll be gone for a week, but I'll put some money into your account for food and necessities." She stood up from where she was sitting on the couch and smoothed out her pants. "I'm going to work now. Goodbye," was called over her shoulder as she walked out of the front door, letting it fall closed behind her.

Yachi slumped back into the couch, trying not to hate the piece of wood that had just separated her from her mother.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments are appreciated!


End file.
